On June 1st, Donald Trump made the disastrous decision to withdraw the United States from the Paris Climate Agreement. On June 21st, the last day of the legislative session, the leaders of the New York Senate failed again to pass a visionary climate bill--the Climate and Community Protection Act (CCPA)--at the precise moment when we need state leadership the most.

The eight members of the IDC have chosen to jointly sponsor the strongest climate, jobs, and justice legislation in the country, the New York State Climate and Community Protection Act. Now is the time for these eight senators to deliver on their support by bringing the bill to the Senate floor for a vote.

Days after President Donald Trump’s immoral and dangerous decision to renege on the Paris Climate Agreement, residents from across the state descended on Albany advocating passage of the Climate & Community Protection Act (CCPA).

"We applaud the Governor in the wake of Trump's shameful decision to withdraw from the Paris Accord for taking an important step toward realizing the massive job-creation potential of tackling the climate crisis head-on. New York Renews has been pushing our elected officials at the state level for over a year to implement strong climate legislation—the Climate and Community Protection Act—that prioritizes jobs and justice.

President Trump's deeply misguided decision to pull out of the historic Paris Climate Agreement is a disaster for all Americans, and for people around the world. We are already feeling the impact of climate change, and Trump's fake populism will only accelerate the dangers of rising sea levels, heat waves, superstorms, food and water insecurity. This was a shameful, ignorant, incompetent and deeply unstrategic decision, and it puts New York families directly in harm’s way.

In his State of the State addresses, Governor Cuomo advanced important efforts to make New York’s electricity grid cleaner, healthier, and more reliable, particularly with his commitment to offshore wind energy. But he knows that power plants represent just 20% of New York’s greenhouse gas emissions.

Governor Cuomo cannot ignore the cries of the communities where he delivers his speeches. In Buffalo and Syracuse, he should outline efforts to reduce air pollution and other impacts of climate change.